Split the restaurant bill without the maths at the table
The waiter only takes one card, so someone pays the lot and spends the next week chasing everyone. Tabby puts the bill on a shared tab that opens from a link. Everyone sees what they owe, nobody downloads anything, and it's free.
Why splitting the bill at dinner gets awkward
- One person ends up paying the whole bill on their card.
- Someone had a starter, a main and two cocktails. Someone else had a salad and tap water.
- Splitting it evenly feels unfair, but working it out dish by dish holds up the whole table.
- A week later, half the group still haven't paid back the person who covered it.
Fair ways to split it
| Situation | What to do on the tab |
|---|---|
| Everyone ate and drank about the same | Add the whole bill once and split it between everyone |
| Some people don't drink | Add the drinks as their own expense, split between just the drinkers |
| Shared starters or bottles | Add each one and split it between the people who had it |
| Orders are very different | Add each person's food as its own expense, split to just them |
| It's someone's birthday | Leave them off each expense and the rest of you cover their share |
| There's a service charge | Add it as its own expense split between everyone, or fold it into each person's amount |
How it works
-
1
Whoever paid starts a tab
Name it something like "Friday dinner" and pick £. You get a private link straight away.
-
2
Drop the link in the group chat
Everyone opens it on their phone and picks their name. No account, no app.
-
3
Add the bill
Add it in one go, or split out the drinks and shared plates. Choose who each part is for.
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4
Get paid back
Tabby shows who owes who. Everyone pays by bank transfer and marks it settled.
Keep the whole night on one tab
Pre-drinks and the bar after
Add rounds to the same tab so one person isn't quietly down £40 by the end of the night.
The taxi home
Split it between just the people in the car.
Regular dinners
Same group every month? Keep one tab going and settle up whenever you like.
More ways to use Tabby
Questions
What's the fairest way to split a restaurant bill? +
If everyone had roughly the same, split it evenly. If not, split out the bits that differ, like drinks or a shared bottle, between just the people who had them. Tabby lets you choose who each expense is for.
How do you split the bill when one person paid? +
The person who paid adds the bill to a tab and shares the link. Everyone can see what they owe and pay them back by bank transfer.
Does everyone need to download an app? +
No. Tabby runs in the browser on any phone. Open the link and pick your name.
Can Tabby scan the receipt? +
No. You type in the amounts, either the total or the parts you want to split differently. If you want to assign every dish at the table, a receipt-scanning app is quicker. Tabby is for keeping track and settling up afterwards.
How do we handle the service charge? +
Add it as a separate expense split between everyone, or include it in each person's amount if orders were very different.
Is it free? +
Yes. No paid plan, no ads and no account.